Brooks had good reason to use a prerecorded live track: the country legend was sick, and in the middle of a strenuous string of concerts on tour.

“We’re in the middle of 12 shows in 10 days. Not 10 shows in 12 days, 12 shows in 10 days,” he revealed.

Still, it was a tough call for the country music legend wanting to make the most of the moment.

“We made a game-time call on whether to sing to a track or lip-sync,” Brooks said in the press room after the show (via People). “And we decided to lip-sync it. My voice just isn’t going anywhere, and we wanted to represent country music the best we can.”

While Brooks still gave an enthusiastic performance, his lip-syncing was apparent at points, generating a slew of responses on social media from fans, both critical and supportive.